It appears that British AOR is alive and well. With the recent acclaim for new comers In Faith and 3 Lions as well as high praise for new albums from the more established Vega, Night By Night and Ten; it seems the Swedes don’t have a monopoly on good quality AOR and Melodic Rock. Angels Or Kings are another newcomer to the scene and on the face of things, they are set to gain the attention of fans of the aforementioned artists.

The British band, with origins dating back to 1988, split up over a decade ago but recent reformed to record this debut. They were voted onto the final Firefest lineup with over 3500 votes. The album is on the heavier side of classic 80s inspired AOR.

Baz Jackson is a memorable frontman. His passionate raspy vocals are at the forefront of each song. At times he appears to be pleading with the audience, such is the power of his emotional delivery.

There’s a veritable flood of keyboards throughout but the songs remain driven by guitar and those big vocals.

The tempo is largely uptempo and consistently delivers that classic British sound.

Musically the band sounds in the same territory as British legends FM, Shy and Heartland with a dash of White Widdow and HEAT.

Highlights are easy to find, the cream of the crop being Any Other Girl, A Harder Place, Same Star, Someone To Save Me and Same Old Love.

All good stuff really.

Yet another promising debut from a seasoned UK outfit. Traditional 80s melodic rock is alive and well. While this album may not be as groundbreaking or as unique as some others, it definitely has that charm of familiarity and is comprised of a good set of songs.